


let your colors blind their eyes [or nick danforth-evans' teen years, in snippets]

by softlikethesunset



Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: Coming Out, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pan Nick
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-17 17:20:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,891
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29475363
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/softlikethesunset/pseuds/softlikethesunset
Summary: what is says on the tin.i wanted nickinald + nick backstory so i did just that.
Relationships: Alex Mercer/Willie (Julie and The Phantoms), Flynn/Carrie Wilson, Julie Molina/Luke Patterson, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Nick/Reggie Peters (Julie and The Phantoms)
Comments: 14
Kudos: 28





	1. we love you

They baked him a cake.

Nick had been expecting his dads to be jubilant when he came out to them, but he didn’t expect  _ a cake. _

A three-layer chocolate cake rested on the center of their marble island, and behind it, his fathers, grinning and both donning aprons covered in flour.

Yellow, cyan and pink frosting swirls cloaked the dessert, and rainbow sprinkles were strewn across the top.

The sides were misshapen and the icing was definitely a little chunkier than it should have been, but nevertheless it was still shining with love and affection.

Nick’s face spread into a toothy grin as he ran to the other side of the countertop, wrapping his dads in a tight hug.

“We love you,” they both reminded him, and that was enough to make their son burst into tears.

Chad drew back first, pulling a cake cutter out of a drawer and handing it to his husband, who sliced the cake into pieces and slid them onto paper plates, still wiping tears from his eyes. “Nick, can you call your sister downstairs please?”

“Sure.” Nick trudged up the stairs, pausing in front of a pink door. “Hey Leenie, come downstairs for some cake?”

The door’s hinges creaked, revealing a small girl in a pink tutu, her eyebrows narrowed. “What kind of cake?”

“Chocolate.”

Her blue eyes softened. “Okay then.” She swung the door back and forth, “I have to get ready.” 

“Ready? Alina, it’s just cake-”

The door shut in his face.

Sighing, Nick walked back into the kitchen and plopped onto one of the barstools, his dads looking up from the pile of dishes they were washing by the sink.

“Where’s your sister?” Ryan balanced a stack of plates in his hands, trying (and failing) to open a cabinet door, Chad eventually reaching over and doing it for him, accompanied by a kiss to the forehead.

“I could do it myself,” The Evans man grumbled, but the edges of his eyes crinkled and he leaned into the display of affection.

“Alina’s getting ready.” Nick accepted the glass of water handed to him by Chad, taking a sip, setting it back down gently.

“Reminds me of her aunt,” Chad mused as he scrubbed a bowl that had clearly been used to make the batter.

Sharpay Evans, Ryan’s flamboyant twin sister, Nick’s favorite relative besides his Uncle Troy. She always came every Christmas bearing tales of her times as a Broadway star (and the gifts she brought weren’t too bad either.)

“I’m here!” A child’s squeaky voice trilled and the family turned to see Alina, her pink tutu exchanged for a rainbow one. “Where’s the cake?”

Chad stacked the bowl away in a cupboard. His tone was teasing as he said, “Just like you, Ry.”

“Shut up.”

Alina bounded over, clambering onto a barstool, her legs swinging jovially, and she dug a finger into the frosting. “Pretty colors.”

“Get your hands out of the frosting-” Ryan swatted her fingers away.

Nick took one of the slices, burying a fork into the cake before taking a bite. “Wow, dads. This is really good.” 

Ryan and Chad exchanged a look, identical smirks on their faces, Ryan chewing his slice thoughtfully.

He spoke up. “So, son, who’s this Reggie we’ve been hearing so much about?”

“No one, dad.”

(That was a lie, of course. But Nick didn’t need to tell his family about his boyfriend. Not yet.)


	2. merry christmas, rockstar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> found family but make it christmas

“When is Reggie coming over?”

“Not until later.” Nick spared a glance over at his sister, who was sitting with her legs crossed on his bed.

“What’s the point of you having a cool boyfriend if he never comes over?”

“He was literally here yesterday, Leenie.”

“But I didn’t see him because you guys were watching a big people movie,” she whined, before scooting to the edge of the bed and peering over his shoulder. “What are you doing?”

Nick tapped his keypad and hit the “ _order_ ” button on a sports store webpage. “Buying a Christmas gift for Pops.”

“I already made presents for Pops _and_ Daddy.” Alina bragged, puffing her chest out. 

“Your macaroni necklaces were wonderful, Leen.”

Downstairs, a ring sounded, and Chad shouted from the living room, “Nick, Alina, could one of you get the door?”

Alina sprinted out, nearly tripping over a stray basket of clothes in her haste, screaming “REGGIE!” as she went.

The ringing stopped, and Alina’s footsteps patted away as she raced down the staircase.

Silence.

“Well, you’re not Reggie.”

Nick cricked an eyebrow and shut his laptop, trudging over to the stairs. He was pretty sure he told the gang to come over at five to exchange gifts, and it wasn’t even four thirty yet.

It was probably Carrie. She had an obsessive need to be early for everything.

“Care, I told you not to come over until at  _ least _ four fourty five,” His feet hit the bottom landing, “Why do you have to be so punctual?”

He lifted his head, staring right into the eyes of Sharpay Evans, a rolling pink suitcase and matching duffle bag (that clearly belonged to her) resting by the door.

“If it isn’t my favorite nephew!” His aunt smacked a kiss on his cheek, leaning in for a hug.

Nick gratefully accepted. Aunt Sharpay’s hugs were much better than his other relatives’. Even better than Uncle Troy’s. Not that he would ever say that.

“Where are your dads?” She asked once she let go, hooking her duffel over her arm. “I’ve missed my brother.”

“In the living room, setting up the tree.”

She strutted out, her heels clicking on the wooden floor behind her.

Nick sighed. Pops was definitely going to complain about the scuff marks left on the floor later, just like he did every year. 

As if on cue, Chad walked by, a box of ornaments in his grasp, stopping to stare at the hardwood before continuing on. “Ah, scuff marks. Wonderful.” He called over his shoulder, “Stop wearing those heels in my house, Evans!”

Sharpay, fetching herself a glass of water in the kitchen, scoffed. “Says the man who tracked mud into my childhood home with his dirty sneakers every time he came over.”

“Touché.”

The doorbell rang again.

Alina, who was crouched next to a window, bolted up to greet the guest.

Or rather, guests.

Willie Covington kicked off his shoes, a nod at Chad, who was emptying the box of ornaments nearby, “‘Know how much you hate the floor marks, Mr. D,” with Alex Mercer, notably wearing a Christmas tree sweater, by his side.

Not unlike Willie, Alex removed his tennis shoes, this time shooting a polite smile to Nick’s family.

Willie clapped Nick’s shoulder. “Copernicus.”

“Wilbur.”

Julie walked through the doorway, a plate of Christmas cookies in her hands (“From T í a Victoria,”), Reggie trailing behind her.

Alina let out a squeal, rushing past Julie and throwing herself into Reggie’s arms. “Nick, your cool boyfriend is here,” She giggled as the bassist tickled her stomach, squirming about.

“Nick, you didn’t tell me your aunt was in town!” Julie exclaimed, heading into the kitchen. 

“Merry Christmas, my angel,” Reggie, now free of Alina’s death grip, pressed a soft kiss to Nick’s hair, making his boyfriend avert his gaze, a flush coloring his cheeks.

“Awe, is someone embarrassed?” A voice teased.

Nick lifted his head and stared over Reggie’s shoulder, narrowing his eyes at Luke Patterson, who was loaded down with an armful of wrapped gifts. “Shut up.”

Reggie kissed Nick’s forehead again, chuckling. 

“Say, Luke, why are you carrying all those packages anyway?” Nick asked.

He huffed. “I drew the short straw.”

“ _ Julie _ drew the short straw,” Reggie corrected. “Luke offered to carry them for her.”

Alex picked a couple of the presents off of Luke’s haul. “Don’t drop any.”

His friend picked up a small gift and threw it at his head in response.

“Hey, where’s Carrie and Flynn?” Julie wandered back into the room, taking the stray package off of the floor as well as a couple others out of Luke’s hands. 

“Oh, that.” Willie’s smile was wide as he gathered the last of the gifts. “They’re coming at five.” 

“Five?” Julie dumped all the presents into Alex’s arms, ignoring his protests and pulling her phone from her jeans pocket. “It’s four forty-five.”

“Yeah, we told them to come at five fifteen. We figured Carrie would show up early, and we wanted to get everything set up before she went into party-planning mode, so…”

“When did this happen?” Her arms crossed.

“Yesterday. In the group chat without you in it. Or Nick, we wanted to surprise him. Reggie’s not in there either. He has a big mouth.” Willie sped out of the room before Julie could bombard him with any more questions, Alex close behind.

“I do not have a big mouth!” Reggie protested, his hands falling to his sides.

Nick kissed his cheek. “Yes you, dear.” 

“Nicky!” Alina appeared next to them, tugging on Nick’s hand. “Come look!”

“At what, Leen-” Nick was pulled away before he could get an answer. 

The family Christmas tree, lit up in glimmering rainbow lights, dozens of presents piled underneath its branches, a stark contrast from the twig Chad had brought home earlier that morning. 

“Me an’ Daddy did it.” Alina smiled a smile that was nearly as bright as the tree itself, tapping her heels together. 

Chad, who was helping Willie with the gifts, frowned. “What about me?”

Alina patted his shoulder. “I guess you helped a lil’, Pops.”

Ryan smirked to himself from the kitchen, where he was filling mugs with steaming hot chocolate. “Alright, kids, gather round.” 

He and Sharpay passed the cups around as everyone gathered in a circle around the tree, snuggling close to their respective partners (or in Alina’s case, brother’s boyfriend,) before starting to hand out gifts.

Nick was about to unwrap one that seemed an awful lot like a scarf (it was from Luke) when the door slammed open. 

“I’m so sorry we’re late!” Carrie fluttered in, dozens of plastic shopping bags in her hands. “Flynn wanted to stop at this store, to get some purple socks for Julie? I’m not quite sure-”

Flynn, decked from head to toe in Christmas attire, made herself comfortable next to Julie and threw a pair of socks into her lap. “Happy Holidays, Jules.”

Julie held them to her chest. “They’re beautiful, Flynn. Thank you.”

“See? Told you she would love them!” Flynn said with a pointed glance at her girlfriend, who just rolled her eyes in response.

Reggie scooted closer to Nick, maneuvering around a quietly snoring Alina before twining their fingers together.

Nick leaned into the touch, leaning back on his other palm, accidentally hitting his full hot chocolate mug in the process.

The cup trembled but didn’t spill, and he let out a sigh of relief, knowing the rage his dad would’ve gone into if the brown liquid got all over his pristine carpet.

Reggie moved the cup out of the way, patting Alina’s hair with a kind smile.

Nick squeezed his palm gently, pulling him in for a light kiss, drawing back and staring into Reggie’s kind green eyes.

His boyfriend kissed his forehead with a concerned gaze. “Is everything alright?”

Nick just grinned back at him. “Everything is perfect. Merry Christmas, rockstar.” 

**Author's Note:**

> next is found family christmas gift exchange featuring soft nickinald <3


End file.
